The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Computer and/or processor systems have become ubiquitous in modern society and times. Computer systems can be used for various applications, such as data storage, data manipulation, data creation and the like. Computer systems generally have human interface portions, such as human input portions and human readable output portions. The various portions of the computer system can be used in various applications, such as in design, program execution, and the like. For example, a computer system can be used in a computer assisted surgical system, such as those disclosed U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/976,328 filed Oct. 28, 2004, entitled “Method and Apparatus for Calibrating Non-Linear Instruments”, incorporated herein by reference.
Computer assisted surgical procedures can include various neurological, spinal, and the like procedures that require a very precise navigation of instruments to safely perform the surgical procedure. Nevertheless, it may be desirable to perform the procedure through a substantially small incision to reduce recovery time, increase efficacy of the procedure, and other appropriate reasons. Therefore, computer systems can assist in navigating, such as tracking an anatomical portion or a surgical instrument, relative to a patient.
The computer systems, therefore, are generally required in operating rooms near a patient. Operating rooms, at least during a surgical procedure, are generally maintained in a substantially sterile state to reduce the possibility of infection of a patient. Computer systems, therefore, are generally required to be kept away from a substantially sterile field, due to the difficulty of sterilizing various portions of the computer system. Although various portions of the computer system may be covered to maintain a sterile and secure environment, such as the human readable output display. The various input portions, however, are nearly impossible to put into a sterile field because of the human interaction required with them. For example, it may be desirable to input data or instructions during a surgical procedure, therefore requiring that the input device either be sterile or removed from the sterile field.
Therefore, it may be desirable to provide a system and apparatus that can allow for maintaining a sterile field around a human input device, such as a keyboard, a mouse, a trackball, or the like, to assist in allowing a surgeon or user more precise control of a computer system.